Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 1, 2025 (17/02/2025 - 14/06/2025)
- Study level
- Postgraduate Coursework
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Architecture, Design and Planning School
This course is one of a suite of elective Architectural Research courses that provide an opportunity to develop research skills and specialist knowledge through a guided independent research project. ARCH7063 provides students with the opportunity to undertake a focused research task in a specific area of research interest, conducted through a series of advisory meetings and self-directed study. The course expects students to achieve an advanced level of academic argument and the mastery of instruments for conducting and expressing that argument. The research project will result in a body of work that communicates the process, outcomes and value of the research. The mode of communication and scope shall be agreed upon between the student and the supervisor. This may include a written dissertation, fieldwork reports, artefacts from material experiments, designs, and research reports. This course is available to students who have completed 16 units towards the Master of Architecture,including a 2unit March Research course and have a cumulative GPA of 5.5 or higher.
ARCH7063 is a guided independent research project conducted through a series of advisory meetings and self-directed study. It provides students with the opportunity to undertake a focussed research task in a specific area of research interest. The course expects students to achieve an advanced level of academic argument and the mastery of instruments for constructing and expressing that argument. The research project culminates in a written dissertation as agreed with the thesis advisor. Students may propose topics that fall within the research interests and expertise of available staff. The course co-ordinator will attempt to place prospective students with an appropriate supervisor. Prospective students should be aware that not all topics will be able to be supervised and that staff availabilityﾠdepends on duties and workload.ﾠ
Course requirements
Assumed background
A Bachelor of Architectural Design or equivalent. A GPA of 5.5, and completion of 4 units from Part D (two research electives).ﾠ
Prerequisites
You'll need to complete the following courses before enrolling in this one:
Completion of 16 units of MArch courses, including a 2unit MArch Research course and a cumulative GPA of 5.5
Restrictions
MArch students only.
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Additional timetable information
A small number of group meetings and seminars will be organised to bring students together. Students will be notified about the schedule of these at the start of the semester.
Aims and outcomes
This course aims to develop students' capacity to plan and implement an independent research project on a topic relevant to the discipline of architecture.
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Critically analyse a body of literature or creative works.
LO2.
Distinguish a research problem in the literature or creative works.
LO3.
Design an investigatory strategy to address an identified research problem.
LO4.
Apply an investigatory strategy to an identified research problem.
LO5.
Construct a scholarly thesis based on argument, evidence and insight.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation | Assignment 1: Thesis Proposal, Structure & Essay | 20% |
Submission 1/04/2025 2:00 pm Presentation in seminar 1/04/2025 |
| Thesis |
Final Thesis
|
70% Hurdle |
20/05/2025 2:00 pm |
| Essay/ Critique | Thesis Correction and Upload | 10% |
Digital submission - espace 16/06/2025 Table of corrections - Blackboard. 16/06/2025 |
A hurdle is an assessment requirement that must be satisfied in order to receive a specific grade for the course. Check the assessment details for more information about hurdle requirements.
Assessment details
Assignment 1: Thesis Proposal, Structure & Essay
- Mode
- Oral, Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 20%
- Due date
Submission 1/04/2025 2:00 pm
Presentation in seminar 1/04/2025
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03
Task description
Assessment Rationale:
The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate the research processes undertaken to date, and to confirm the plan and format for the completed thesis document.
Submit a research report consisting of a) a detailed research proposal, b) a short essay suitable to be incorporated in the thesis, and c) an annotated bibliography.
Format the Research Proposal under the following headings: Title / Abstract (100 - 300 words) / Discussion (a prose statement of up to 600 - 1200 words describing the subject of the research, the research questions, the method or mode of inquiry, the likely significance of the study / Chapter Plan (one - two pages only, 3 - 5 bullet points per chapter) / Research Plan (showing work week by week to submission / Bibliography of works relevant to the study (mark with a star those works consulted thus far.)
Essay: a sample of writing showing your ability to report and/or analyse the first stages of the research. This could be a draft of a chapter, a set of precis of readings at length, an exegesis of a construction, experiment or field trip, as agreed with the advisor. Provision is made for progressive assessment; formative by the supervisor in weekly meetings, and summative in marks and feedback for this assignment.
Complex/Authentic assessment using AI and/or MT to support learning: Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Translation (MT) are emerging tools that may support students in completing this assessment task. Students may appropriately use AI and/or MT in completing this assessment task. Students must clearly reference any use of AI or MT in each instance. A failure to reference generative AI or MT use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
The School of Architecture, Design and Planning uses Blackboard and Turnitin for assessment submission. Turnitin is accessed through the course Blackboard site. Turnitin also checks for plagiarism or instances where the original work of others is not appropriately acknowledged. Uploaded files must contain readable text and not be rasterised. Students are advised to commence assignment uploads with sufficient amount of time (consider possible technical problems with computers, internet speed, etc). After successfully submitting an assignment through Turnitin, a ‘Submission Complete!’ screen will be displayed. It is the student’s responsibility to check assignment preview and confirm successful submission. If the ‘Submission Complete!’ screen isn’t displayed, the student should regard the submission as unsuccessful. Students should download a copy of the digital receipt as proof they have submitted the assignment. Students who are experiencing upload issues must advise the Course Coordinator immediately by email and should include screenshots and a copy of the assessment for submission.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
If a student wishes to apply for an extension, they must apply online on or before the assignment due date. When possible, it is suggested that requests are submitted 2 business days prior to the submission due date for the assignment to allow processing time. Students with outstanding applications for extensions are advised to submit their assessment by the original due date, irrespective of whether the work is complete, so that what has been done can be graded.
Late submission
The late penalty for this assessment item will be calculated as follows:
10% per 24 hours of the maximum possible mark for the assessment item, or one grade per 24 hours if graded on a scale of 1-7, or equivalent penalty if an alternative grading approach is used. For example, a report worth a maximum of 40 marks, submitted 28 hours late will attract a penalty of 8 marks, calculated as 2 periods of 24 hours x 10% x 40 marks. Where there are more than 7 periods of 24 hours, the penalty is 100%.
Final Thesis
- Hurdle
- Identity Verified
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Thesis
- Weight
- 70% Hurdle
- Due date
20/05/2025 2:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03, L04, L05
Task description
Assessment Rationale:
The Thesis is a document of 10,000 - 15,000 words including footnotes. The word count could be less if the research outcomes are largely graphical or numerical, as agreed with the advisor. Apart from text, the Thesis may contain drawings, data, models, images, video and other media as agreed with the advisor. The Thesis may develop research previously conducted for other 2-unit Part D Research courses; however, the expectation is that prior work has been reconsidered and reframed in the thesis, not reproduced verbatim. The thesis should represent a substantial new body of work. No more than 20% of the text can be repeated from earlier submissions. The Thesis should contain a section headed “Prior research included in this Thesis” identifying any sections that draw on research conducted prior to enrolling in ARCH7060 and any prose sections that have been previously submitted for a previous course. The Thesis should be presented as a PDF document suitable to be printed at A4 either portrait or landscape format, or A3 landscape format. If the thesis includes video or 3D models embedded in the PDF, make sure to also include 2D still images of this material in case of future media incompatibility. Following the examination of the thesis, students will be required to make any recommended corrections or amendments to the satisfaction of the supervisor and course coordinator, and upload the corrected thesis to e-space.
Formative Feedback: You should be meeting and discussing drafts regularly with your advisor(s) during teaching weeks. Formal formative feedback points are scheduled in Week 10 of Semester 1 when a draft chapter should be submitted directly to your advisor for feedback. Students will present a 10-15 minute paper based on one aspect of their research and include a brief overview of how this fits into the thesis. Formative feedback will be given verbally following presentations.
Assessment tasks prohibiting use of AI or MT: This assessment task evaluates students' abilities, skills and knowledge without the aid of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Machine Translation (MT). Students are advised that the use of AI or MT technologies to develop responses is strictly prohibited and may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Hurdle requirements
A hurdle is an assessment requirement that must be satisfied to receive a specific grade in the course. 'Final Thesis' assessment item is designated as a Hurdle in this course. This means a minimum achievement of 50% (a grade of 4) is required for this assessment item in order to pass the course. Meeting the hurdle requirement for a course does not guarantee a passing grade for the course and in order to pass this course, students also need to achieve a minimum grade of 4 overall.Submission guidelines
The School of Architecture, Design and Planning uses Blackboard and Turnitin for assessment submission. Turnitin is accessed through the course Blackboard site. Turnitin also checks for plagiarism or instances where the original work of others is not appropriately acknowledged. Uploaded files must contain readable text and not be rasterised. Students are advised to commence assignment uploads with sufficient amount of time (consider possible technical problems with computers, internet speed, etc). After successfully submitting an assignment through Turnitin, a ‘Submission Complete!’ screen will be displayed. It is the student’s responsibility to check assignment preview and confirm successful submission. If the ‘Submission Complete!’ screen isn’t displayed, the student should regard the submission as unsuccessful. Students should download a copy of the digital receipt as proof they have submitted the assignment. Students who are experiencing upload issues must advise the Course Coordinator immediately by email and should include screenshots and a copy of the assessment for submission.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
If a student wishes to apply for an extension, they must apply online on or before the assignment due date. When possible, it is suggested that requests are submitted 2 business days prior to the submission due date for the assignment to allow processing time. Students with outstanding applications for extensions are advised to submit their assessment by the original due date, irrespective of whether the work is complete, so that what has been done can be graded.
Late submission
The late penalty for this assessment item will be calculated as follows:
An initial penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark allocated for the assessment item will be deducted for the first 2-hour block. A second penalty of an additional 20% of the maximum possible mark allocated for the assessment item will be deducted for the second 2-hour block (adding up to penalty of 30% of the maximum possible mark). Any submissions received after this point will not receive any marks unless an extension has been approved. Each two-hour block is recorded from the time the submission is due.
Thesis Correction and Upload
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 10%
- Due date
Digital submission - espace 16/06/2025
Table of corrections - Blackboard. 16/06/2025
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L03, L04, L05
Task description
Assessment Rationale:
Following the assessment of the thesis, 10% of the awarded grade will be withheld, pending:
a) the satisfactory completion of any corrections and amendments recommended as part of the examination,
b) the upload of the corrected thesis to e-space digital research repository.
Students should include a table that succinctly demonstrates how they have responded to any feedback, recommendations and corrections made by the examiners.
Satisfactory corrections, amendments and upload will be completed to the satisfaction of the supervisor and course co-ordinator.
Complex / authentic assessment using AI and/or MT to support learning: This task has been designed to be challenging, authentic and complex. Whilst students may use AI and/or MT technologies, successful completion of assessment in this course will require students to critically engage in specific contexts and tasks for which artificial intelligence will provide only limited support and guidance. A failure to reference AI/MT use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct. To pass this assessment, students will be required to demonstrate detailed comprehension of their written submission independent of AI/MT tools.
Submission guidelines
The School of Architecture, Design and Planning uses Blackboard and Turnitin for assessment submission. Turnitin is accessed through the course Blackboard site. Turnitin also checks for plagiarism or instances where the original work of others is not appropriately acknowledged. Uploaded files must contain readable text and not be rasterised. Students are advised to commence assignment uploads with sufficient amount of time (consider possible technical problems with computers, internet speed, etc). After successfully submitting an assignment through Turnitin, a ‘Submission Complete!’ screen will be displayed. It is the student’s responsibility to check assignment preview and confirm successful submission. If the ‘Submission Complete!’ screen isn’t displayed, the student should regard the submission as unsuccessful. Students should download a copy of the digital receipt as proof they have submitted the assignment. Students who are experiencing upload issues must advise the Course Coordinator immediately by email and should include screenshots and a copy of the assessment for submission.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
If a student wishes to apply for an extension, they must apply online on or before the assignment due date. When possible, it is suggested that requests are submitted 2 business days prior to the submission due date for the assignment to allow processing time. Students with outstanding applications for extensions are advised to submit their assessment by the original due date, irrespective of whether the work is complete, so that what has been done can be graded.
Late submission
The late penalty for this assessment item will be calculated as follows:
An initial penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark allocated for the assessment item will be deducted for the first 2-hour block. A second penalty of an additional 20% of the maximum possible mark allocated for the assessment item will be deducted for the second 2-hour block (adding up to penalty of 30% of the maximum possible mark). Any submissions received after this point will not receive any marks unless an extension has been approved. Each two-hour block is recorded from the time the submission is due.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Cut off Percent | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) | 0 - 24 |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 2 (Fail) | 25 - 44 |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) | 45 - 49 |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes |
| 4 (Pass) | 50 - 64 |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 5 (Credit) | 65 - 74 |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 6 (Distinction) | 75 - 84 |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 7 (High Distinction) | 85 - 100 |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
Additional course grading information
Identity verified assessment (IVA) - Thesis Courses
Thesis Courses require students to plan, conduct and report on research in an iterative and cumulative way throughout the duration of the course. To meet assessment validity and integrity obligations in Thesis Courses students must regularly present and discuss their work with teaching staff over the course of scheduled learning activities including lectures, tutorials, seminars, workshops, individual and group consultations, and presentations. Students are expected to participate in at least 80% of scheduled learning activities in which the progress of their work is intended to be monitored and reviewed. If participation in such activities falls below 80%, students may be asked to submit process work (including drawings, analysis of research data, drafts of written assessments). If a student is not able to provide evidence of authorship to the satisfaction of the course coordinator, or if their participation falls below 50%, a maximum grade of 3 will be awarded.
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is not available for some items in this course.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Multiple weeks |
Tutorial |
Supervision Regular weekly or fortnightly meetings with the course advisor to the equivalent of one hour per week. Regular attendance and showing work in progress is a requirement. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04, L05 |
Week 2 (03 Mar - 09 Mar) |
Workshop |
Initial meeting A briefing on course requirements for thesis students in Architecture and Planning. A short description of topics by the students. Tuesday 4th March 2pm-5pm Please make sure you have met your supervisor in Week 1 and confirm your topic. Learning outcomes: L02, L03 |
Week 6 (31 Mar - 06 Apr) |
Seminar |
Research Proposal Submission Presentation of Research Proposal. Students will verbally present their up-to-date research plan, which is then submitted for assessment. The verbal presentation is not assessed, its purpose is formative feedback and peer learning. Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03 |
Week 10 (05 May - 11 May) |
Workshop |
Dissertation workshop Workshop on the structuring and writing of the research dissertations. Not assessed, peer learning and staff guidance. Tuesday 6th May 2pm-5pm Learning outcomes: L05 |
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.